Monday, April 5, 2010

Explore and make music history at the UIS Music Spring 2010 Showcase Concert

The UIS Music Spring Showcase Concert will be held in Sangamon Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 9, 2010 and feature the Chorus, Chamber Orchestra, and Concert Band.

Many of the selections performed at this year’s UIS Music Spring Showcase Concert illustrate the evolution of music that is still popular, decades and in some cases even centuries after it was first composed. The Chorus, under the direction of Dr. Sharon Graf, will open the evening performing songs from a variety of cultures and eras, including “Ahe Lau Makani (There is a Breath)” by Queen Liliuokalani, the last reigning monarch of Hawaii; “Fire, Fire,” a polyphonic English madrigal by Thomas Morley; “The Erie Canal,” an American folk song accompanied by piano and fiddle; “Oleana,” an American folk song accompanied by violin; and “Blackbird,” a classic Beatles song. Todd Cranson will add to the chorus’ performance of “Blackbird” with a solo tuba rendition of the classic tune.

The Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of Todd Cranson, will follow, performing selections from John Robichaux’s 19th Century New Orleans Dance Orchestra. Robichaux, a jazz bandleader, drummer and violinist, wrote more than 350 songs and many orchestral arrangements, which are now housed at the William Ransom Hogan Jazz Archive at Tulane University.

Following a brief intermission and presentation of student awards, the Concert Band under the direction of Todd Cranson will take the stage. The Concert Band performance will include a number of selections, including “Galop from Genevieve De Braban” by Jacques Offenbach, from which the U.S. Marine Corps Hymn was later extracted; the landmark “Fantasia for Band” written by Vittorio Giannini; and “Clash” by Ryan Main, an interesting pieces filled with dissonant sounds.

Doors will open for the concert at 7:20 p.m., and refreshments will be served in the lobby after the performance.

The Showcase Concert is free and open to the public. Donations are welcome and will be used to benefit the UIS Music Student Merit Award. For more information visit www.uis.edu/music/ or contact Todd Cranson at rcran2@uis.edu or 217/206-7549.